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Amp guys, help me out! Marshall 1974X alternative?

Amp guys, help me out! Marshall 1974X alternative?

Posted: Wed Jul 04, 2018 3:46 am

by frigid midget

I thought I made it easier for myself when I gave up on two channel amps, figured using pedals would make amp shopping a breeze...Untill I discovered that the 1974X perfectly fits with what I had in mind, everything else I hear/try now sounds meh

I can't spend that much though, so I'm looking for the next best thing. Any ideas for something that easily available?

Thanks!

Re: Amp guys, help me out! Marshall 1974X alternative?

Posted: Wed Jul 04, 2018 7:52 am

by MechaGodzilla

Traynor YGM3? Similar wattage, 1x12 combo, 2xel84 power section, nice reverb and an amazing tremolo. There are others in the YGM series but the 3 is the most common afaik.

Re: Amp guys, help me out! Marshall 1974X alternative?

Posted: Wed Jul 04, 2018 8:30 am

by frigid midget

Thanks for the tip, but though I'm sure it'd be a solid option (my main amp these days is an old YBA-1, SICK amp)...I forgot to mension I'm in the EU.

The vintage market is rough on us when it comes to canadian/american gear, especially vintage stuff :/

For my 'home' amp I was after a slightly different flavour than the YBA-1, with a little less oomph. I'm in love with that YBA-1 though, so if I don't find that cheap 1974X-esque amp, the other option is to have the YBA-1 modded (1/4 power switch) and to get a 1x12 cabinet...

Re: Amp guys, help me out! Marshall 1974X alternative?

Posted: Wed Jul 04, 2018 12:29 pm

by MechaGodzilla

frigid midget wrote:I forgot to mension I'm in the EU.

You and me both, brother! (for now, at least fuckin brexit ) I guess you know as well as anyone that Traynor's aren't nonexistent over here, so keep an eye out?

People like to overvalue Pro Jrs (weird how they undervalue Traynors ) but they sound good and v v portable.WEM Dominator? They're mostly 1x12 18watts (well, 15-20 anyway) and were around the same price as Traynors. Not sure what they go for lately.

Re: Amp guys, help me out! Marshall 1974X alternative?

Posted: Wed Jul 04, 2018 1:19 pm

by repoman

Pro Juniors are really great little amps and definitely sound more Marshall than Fender in flavor when cranked, dunno if they sound like 18w Marshalls though. Fender came out with the Bassbreaker line a couple years ago which are very cool looking early Marshall looking things, maybe check those out. Vox AC15 could fill that sound well too I think. Also, the 18watt Marshall is one of the most cloned amps out there, so finding a boutique/kit built one for much less than the real thing is probably pretty easy.

Re: Amp guys, help me out! Marshall 1974X alternative?

Posted: Sun Jul 08, 2018 7:36 pm

by jirodreamsofdank

The WEM Dominator is supposed to be very similar, isn't it (and kind of a reverse clone w/ the Marshall taking cues from WEM)?

Re: Amp guys, help me out! Marshall 1974X alternative?

Posted: Sun Jul 08, 2018 11:05 pm

by Sonaboy

Crate V18?It would probably only cost you about $200 to find out.

or...nevermind.

Re: Amp guys, help me out! Marshall 1974X alternative?

Posted: Tue Jul 10, 2018 11:14 am

by popvulture

Look for a Selmer Treble & Bass. Insanely underrated British valve amp, and much easier to find over there than here.

Re: Amp guys, help me out! Marshall 1974X alternative?

Posted: Tue Jul 10, 2018 11:27 am

by MechaGodzilla

popvulture wrote:Look for a Selmer Treble & Bass. Insanely underrated British valve amp, and much easier to find over there than here.

They do sound great as well but being 2xEL34 they're a bit ballsier than an 18 watt marshall. Obviously, it depends on what speakers you pair with it. Also the reverb in the T&B50SVR is lacklustre so I wouldn't pay more for one over the non-reverb version.

Plugged into the bass channel, presence and treble up high, strat neck pickup, you get a lovely clean sound reminiscent of Wind Cries Mary or something. Really undervalued amp although some dealers are trying to inflate the value these days.

Re: Amp guys, help me out! Marshall 1974X alternative?

Supposedly they are suppliers for Weber? Dunno. But <$300 is damn tempting.

a chinese garage shop building clones? what's the shipping?

Re: Amp guys, help me out! Marshall 1974X alternative?

Posted: Fri Jul 13, 2018 10:29 am

by repoman

How do the Chinese make this stuff without losing money. Its mind boggling how cheap all these 'counterfeit' things are. Immediately you think about how awful the stuff is and how it probably doesn't even work, but I recently saw an analysis of some manufacturing details for cheap generic carbon fiber bikes made in China, it turned out their manufacturing was far better in some important aspects than what the bike frames sold for 2000-6000 by companies like Cannondale, Specialized were. Makes me worry about the future in the west tbh.

Re: Amp guys, help me out! Marshall 1974X alternative?

Posted: Fri Jul 13, 2018 10:59 am

by Jero

repoman wrote:How do the Chinese make this stuff without losing money. Its mind boggling how cheap all these 'counterfeit' things are. Immediately you think about how awful the stuff is and how it probably doesn't even work, but I recently saw an analysis of some manufacturing details for cheap generic carbon fiber bikes made in China, it turned out their manufacturing was far better in some important aspects than what the bike frames sold for 2000-6000 by companies like Cannondale, Specialized were. Makes me worry about the future in the west tbh.

Low wages, high volume, different health/environmental regulations...the list goes on